Kevin, while I appreciate the grittiness of the game (I do love the grit), last night was not basketball – it was something else – maybe it was arena football, or rugby, who knows.I am seriously beginning to wonder about our offense.These are the 2 questions I pondered after last night’s abomination:

Are we a team of bad passers?(Right now, Yes)

Are we a selfish team?(No)

Let’s get this out of the way first: we are impatient on offense at times, with Cassell / Maggette / Brand taking a jumper with :17 left on the shot clock.However, this isn’t a high % of total possessions (though with our lack of offensive coherency, the % is increasing), and it’s a “hurry-up” strategy that catches teams by surprise and works for us if we’re making shots.

Let’s focus on all the other possessions, where we’re patient and trying to execute a half-court set: as you’ve alluded to in previous posts, we’re just not very good at it!Someone ends up over-dribbling (Shaun), or just holding the ball way too long (Mobley).Brand and Kaman are guilty of it too: in short, there are potential "black holes" on the court at any time during a game.

This results more times than not in the following: :7 left on the shot clock, [insert player name] is forced to “create” a low % shot with a defender in his grill.Really, do we ever get a nice, clean open look?Sometimes I think we only score because we're a team of very talented one-on-one scorers.This is especially glaring without Cassell (who if he doesn’t look to shoot it right away, gets us set up quickly).

This begs the question: are we just bad passers and there’s nothing we can do about it?

An inexorable truth of basketball, something that any player on any level knows, is that passing is infectious.There are great passers, but there aren’t really bad passers.Look at the Pistons – hell look at the Mavs!They look to make the extra pass, to rotate the ball quickly and find the open man. And people are actually moving off the ball and making themselves available as a passing option.

So who’s accountable here?

Well, actually his father. (I couldn’t resist the sliver of an opening I had to note the following:Junior wouldn’t even crack the NBA Affirmative Action Top 20 – go ahead, think about it, we did at poker night a month back… see?)When your team doesn’t do the following things well: space the floor (notice how we are always over-loaded on the weak side); move without the ball and to the shooter; screen-and-roll w/ an out; make the extra pass; avoid “black-hole"-itis; give passing options when trapped (Kaman gets double-teamed… he has no where to go!) – I think it’s on the head coach.

I’m ready to have my mind changed, but from where I sit, Dunleavy really can’t coach offense that well.I am reminded of the debacle that was Game 7 of the 2000 NBA Western Conference Finals.

This may be most people’s enduring image -but mine is of Scottie Pippen holding the ball at the top of the key watching the rest of an immensely talented Blazers team just stand around, being forced to throw up desperation 18-footers with no time left on the shot clock as a lead and title chances evaporate…

Someone please argue with me and tell me I’m wrong, because right now I have too many memories of 7 minute FG-less stretches where we can’t execute a simple offensive set and get someone a high % open look.

Posted Wednesday, October 29 at 3:20PM

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Comments

Remedies-
Run: A fast break dunk is always a high% shot. Unless of course you are Bonzi Wells.
Slash: Slashers break down the D. Without 50 this is an area where the Clippers are suffering. Shaun is improving quickly here but he still has a ways to go.
Pass out of the post: Someone chart next game what percentage of the time the ball goes into the post, along with a second defender, and EB or Chris create their own shot anyway. This is where open shots are created at the arc. Chris full on puts his head down. He has no chance to see an open man. Luckily for him and us he can actually score against the double. But the perimeter guys are to blame too. Someone needs to show to where the big can see and this starts the rotation and mismatches around the horn. This is the Spurs offense in a nutshell. And with the respect both EB and Chris draw it should be even easier. Noone is doubling Nazr.
Draw fouls: I hate to say this, but the Clippers get hacked and then barely glare at the ref. Get them some film of Kobe crying out for a call and make that the focus of practice one day. Not honorable, but its the only thing the refs understand. This is even more important when 50 isn't keeping the other team in foul trouble.
Vary: The Clippers do the same thing ALOT. This is on the ballhandler. The plays have more than one option but when they call the same number again and again its easy to cheat and overplay the target.

The defense is right and the offense isn't too far. 5ppg isn't too much to ask for is it?

Your comment about the complete collapse of the Blazers in game seven of the 2000 Western Conference finals really hits home. I can't help but think of that game everytime I see the Clips unable to hold onto a lead late in the fourth quarter. And it seems to happen on a regular basis when Dunleavy is coaching against a team coached by Phil Jackson('91-'92 NBA finals Lakers vs. Bulls, WCF in 2000, now Clippers-Lakers). MD must have nightmares about Jackson.

John: great post. "Someone chart next game what percentage of the time the ball goes into the post, along with a second defender, and EB or Chris create their own shot anyway". I'm at the Blazers game tonight so I'm gonna do it. I'm really curious. I'll post the results.

I have to agree with MUSkip...Anschultz Entertainment Group will pretty much go to any length to make sure they hold up their end of the bargain for Kansas City, and I see that coming in the form of some really sweet deal to move to KC.